Recording apparatus managing system

• US 5,270,775 A
• Filed: 02/07/1992
• Issued: 12/14/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Suzuki, Nobuyoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Grimley, A. T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Brase, Sandra L.
• Application Number:
  US07/832,345
• Time in Patent Office: 676 Days
• Field of Search: 355/200, 355/202, 355/204, 355/205, 355/206, 355/208, 355/209, 355/210, 364/400, 364/401, 364/403, 395/200, 395/600, 395/725
• US Class Current: 399/8
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/5079 for maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/02 Counting the number of copies; Billing
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/00113 Plurality of apparatus configured in groups each with its own host
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00002 Diagnosis, testing or measuring; Detecting, analysing or monitoring not otherwise provided for error detection, error correction or monitoring in digital computers or digital computer components G06F11/00

Abstract

A recording apparatus managing system for automatically totalizing and managing the conditions of use of recording apparatuses. When a date of collection of management data is set by a collection-date setting device of a host computer, a determination is made by a holidaypresence-or-absence determining device as to whether or not the collection date falls on a holiday. If it does not fall on a holiday, an automatic collection device is operated on that set day, an instruction for transferring the management data is transmitted from the host computer to a relay apparatus, and the management data held by the relay apparatus is transferred to the host computer. In addition, if it is determined that the set date falls on a holiday, the automatic collection/transfer device is operated by a setdate automatic changing device on a day other than the holiday, and the management data is automatically collected from the relay apparatus by the host computer. The management data collected from the relay apparatus by the host computer is automatically supplied to a high-order host computer on the date of supply set in advance.

Claims

1. A recording apparatus managing system comprising:

at least one terminal station including managing means for managing data including information as to the use of a plurality of recording means installed on said terminal station, a relay means connected to said managing means to collect and hold the management data from said managing means at a set time;

a master station including a first host operation means connected respectively to said relay means through a data network to effect data processing, said first host operation means including collection-date setting means for setting a date of collection of the management data held by said relay means, automatic collection means for automatically collecting the management data held by said relay means on the collection day set in advance by said collection-date setting means, means for determining whether the set date falls on a predetermined day, and means for operating said automatic collecting means on a day other than the predetermined day in response to an output of said determining means.

2. The system as defined in claim 1 wherein the predetermined day is at least one holiday, the holiday being stored in a memory means of said master station in advance.

3. The system as defined in claim 1 wherein said operating means causes said automatic collecting means to collect the management data on a preceding day of the predetermined day.

4. The system as defined in claim 1 wherein said operating means causes said automatic collecting means to collect the management data on the following day of the predetermined day.

5. The system as defined in claim 1 wherein the data processing comprises the collection of the management data held by said relay means, totalization calculation, and charge calculation.

6. The system as defined in claim 1 further comprising a second operating means connected to said first operating means via the data network to receive the management data on a predetermined supply day set by said first operating means, wherein said first operating means further comprises an automatic supply means for automatically supplying the collected management data from said first operating means to said second operating means on the predetermined supply day set in advance.

7. The system as defined in claim 1 wherein said managing data comprises physical distribution data, maintenance data, and data representing the conditions of use.

8. The system as defined in claim 7 wherein said physical distribution data comprises at least one of department account data, charge data based on count meters of copying machine and data on the number of copies made per type of paper in each copying machine;

said maintenance data comprises at least one of data on the number of toner replenishment, data on the number of jamming, data on the starting time and ending time of use for each day, and data on the number of operations; and

said data representing the conditions of use comprises data totalizing the amounts of the conditions of use including the details of use for each copying operation;

the paper size, the use of black-and-white, full-color, black-and-white tracing paper, or monocolor printing, the type of copy mode, optional functions of the double-sided/multiplex copying, plate making for a printing machine, reduced copy, and edited or synthesized copy.